Japan working to arrange Abe-Kim summit: reports Japan is working to arrange a meeting between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Kim Jong Un after the North Korean leader said he was open to talks, local media reported Thursday.The Sankei Shimbun said Kim discussed the possibility during historic talks Tuesday with US President Donald Trump."During the summit with Trump, Kim told Trump 'I can meet with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe'," the Sankei reported.Japan wants the talks to push the emotive issue of citizens abducted by the North decades ago, which has seen little movement despite a whirlwind of diplomacy in recent months.Abe on Thursday repeated a pledge to push for dialogue with Pyongyang on the issue as he met families of abductees."I will face (North Korea) directly and work toward resolving the abduction issue," he told the families."Japan has to take the initiative to resolve the issue," he said, adding that the summit would be "meaningless if it yields no progress on the abduction issue".Government officials are weighing several scenarios, including Abe visiting Pyongyang in August, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported.Another scenarioJun 14, 2018
Kim returns to Pyongyang from Singapore North Korean leader Kim Jong-un waits before boarding an Air China aircraft to depart from Changi Airport in Singapore, June 12, after his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa Island. EPA-YonhapNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un landed back in Pyongyang early on Wednesday, the North's official news agency said on Thursday, after departing Singapore Tuesday night following the close of a historic summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.There had been speculation Kim would stop by Beijing to brief Chinese President Xi Jinping on the outcome of the U.S.-North Korea summit and the airplanes the North Korean delegation had left on were closely tracked by international media. (Reuters)Jun 14, 2018
S. Korea-US joint military drills likely to be halted President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. Pompeo briefed Moon on the outcome of the recent Washington-Pyongyang summit. / YonhapBy Kim RahnSouth Korea and the United States may suspend their regular joint military exercises after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the suspension as a concession to North Korea in return for denuclearization, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in later also implied the possibility. Discussions about the issue are underway between the defense authorities of the allies, as the first affected exercise may be Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG), which is scheduled to take place in August.Some American media reported Thursday that the Trump administration would announce the formal suspension of the UFG soon. After his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore, Tuesday, Trump said he would stop the “provocative” and “expensive” military drills with South Korea, which he called “war games,” as long as denuclearization talks continue in good faith. MooJun 14, 2018
Pyongyang may start denuclearization process in 2-3 weeks: ex-minister Former Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, currently a senior researcher at Sejong Institute, during an interview with Hankook Ilbo on April 17. Korea Times fileNorth Korea is expected to take measures to denuclearize within the next two to three weeks following this week's historic summit between Washington and Pyongyang in Singapore, an expert on North Korea said Thursday. Former Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, currently a senior researcher at the private think tank Sejong Institute, made the remark during a forum hosted by the institute in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, to analyze the outcome of the Tuesday summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Lee also took a view that the United States, in line with the North's implementation of such measures, will come up with rudimentary steps it could take to ease economic sanctions on the North and normalize its relations with Pyongyang, expecting that Washington and Pyongyang will reveal details not included in the accord released by the two countries after the Singapore summit. The document calJun 14, 2018
Seoul closes office for delayed North Korean human rights foundation Members of North Korean defectors groups in front of the Seoul Government Complex in Gwanghwamun district, May 19, demand the South Korean government not send workers from a North Korean restaurant in China who had defected to Seoul in 2016 back to Pyongyang and the workers be protected. Korea Times fileSouth Korea's unification ministry said Thursday that it has closed the office for a state-run foundation for North Korea's human rights, whose launch has been delayed for nearly two years amid political differences. The ministry, which handles inter-Korean relations, said that it will terminate the lease contract for the office in Seoul this month to prevent the further waste of government funds, estimated at around 63 million won ($58,120) every month. The office has been vacant since first being rented 21 months ago. "The move is only an administrative and operational measure to stem further financial losses. The government's stance to launch the foundation on human rights for North Korean citizens as soon as possible remains unchanged," the ministry said. The foundation is aimed aJun 14, 2018
Pompeo: US still wants 'CVID' to resolve North Korea issue U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, right, attends a joint news conference with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, center, and Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, left, following their meeting at Foreign Ministry in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday. AP-YonhapU.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday his administration has not dropped the aim of denuclearizing North Korea in a "complete, verifiable and irreversible" manner, apparently in response to criticism about the Singapore summit deal. Speaking after talks with his South Korean and Japanese counterparts here, he stressed that there would be no sanctions relief for Pyongyang before that. The United States and the two other regional powers remain "committed to the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID) of North Korea," he said at a joint press conference. His remarks came as some media and experts find fault with President Donald Trump's Singapore summit accord with the North's leader Kim Jong-un, which has no clear mention of Washington's stated goal of CVID. The accord just stipulates thatJun 14, 2018
Koreas begin military talks to discuss easing tensions South Korean delegation for general-level military talks between South and North Korea on Thursday, led by Major General Kim Do-gyun, crosses the military demarcation line over to the northern side of inter-Korean border village of Panmunjeom in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, as a North Korean official greets them. YonhapSouth and North Korea began their first high-level military talks in more than 10 years Thursday to discuss ways to ease cross-border tensions. The meeting kicked off on the northern side of the truce village of Panmunjeom at 10 a.m., according to Seoul's defense ministry. These were the first such talks since the two sides met in December 2007. South Korea's five-member delegation is led by Major General Kim Do-gyun. The North's delegation is led by Lieutenant General An Ik-san, who is accompanied by four other officials. "(We) plan to discuss such issues as easing military tensions between the two Koreas and arranging a defense ministerial meeting as part of efforts to implement what was agreed upon in the military sector under the Panmunjeom Declaration," Kim told reporJun 14, 2018
Analysts slam Trump for stopping joint military drills By Kim Jae-kyoungSINGAPORE ― Global analysts have criticized U.S. President Donald Trump for his plan to halt joint military drills with South Korea, which he announced Tuesday at a press conference following his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.They believe Trump gave too many concessions to Kim without receiving pledges over how and when Kim will dismantle the North's nuclear weapons.Troy Stangarone“Trump's agreement to end military exercises is a significant concession on the part of the U.S., but we will have to see if there are concrete measures taking place on North Korea's part,” Troy Stangarone, a Washington-based expert on the Korean Peninsula, told The Korea Times.“The agreement to end military exercises will have implications for the U.S. and South Korea's ability to deter North Korea and defend against attack.”Sean King, senior vice president of Park Strategies, echoed his view, saying, “Trump calls our war games provocative. Unbelievably inappropriate comment.”Sean King“Plus, Kim got us to say complete denuclearizationJun 13, 2018
Diverse scenarios considered to develop North Korea's economy Businessmen who have factories in Gaeseong Industrial Complex clap their hands as they watch the historic summit between North Korea and the United States on TV at Korea Federation of SMEs headquarters in Seoul, Tuesday. / YonhapBy Yoon Ja-youngWith the historic first summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump adding to a peaceful mood on the peninsula, diverse scenarios are being considered to help North Korea develop its economy.If international sanctions are lifted following North Korea's denuclearization, inter-Korean economic cooperation as well as support from the international community will gain momentum. The government is looking into inter-Korean economic cooperation projects that had been agreed upon during the former Roh Moo-hyun administration. These include building a special economic zone, further developing the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, and repairing roads and railways.There could also be support and investment through international organizations. As a first step, North Korea will likely join the International Monetary Fund (IMF)Jun 13, 2018
China the biggest winner of Kim-Trump summit Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks during a joint press conference of the Heads of SCO Member States during the 18th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Qingdao city, Shandong province, China, 10 June 2018. / EPAThe outcome of the Singapore summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was good news for one absent but key player: China.China has emerged a big winner at the summit after Trump made surprising pledges to suspend war games with South Korea and eventually pull U.S. troops from there. Beijing dislikes the U.S. military presence in South Korea and Japan and has urged Washington to suspend the drills that Pyongyang claims are rehearsals for invasion, in return for the North's halting of nuclear activities.China wants to see a reduction in foreign military forces in Northeast Asia and for the gap between Washington and its allies and partners to widen, said Ryan Hass, who directed China policy for the U.S. National Security Council during the former President Barack Obama administration. ``Beijing is now on track to achieve these objJun 13, 2018
